Hide & Seek
by thomthom830
Summary: Post-Winter Soldier. Warning: Spoilers! Captain Rogers has a new personal mission: track down Bucky. But with SHIELD gone and Hydra taking over, will he be able to do it? He's got Sam Wilson on his side and there's that neighbor of his that he wouldn't mind getting to know a bit more... Please read & review.
1. Chapter 1

Author's note: so this is certainly not my first Captain America fic. I've got a couple up already. But since seeing The Winter Soldier, I definitely felt like doing something a bit different. So, please read on and let me know what you think!

SPOILER WARNING! If you haven't seen the Winter Soldier, you might not want to read this.

Disclaimer: I definitely don't own anything doing with the rights of Captain America or any of the characters in the Marvel Universe, but goodness, I wish I did! I'm just borrowing them for a bit for my own (and maybe a few readers) enjoyment.

Hide & Seek

Captain Steve Rogers and Sam Wilson watched as Natasha Romanoff walked away. They were still standing at Nick Fury's gravesite.

"So, Cap, what's our move?" Sam asked.

"I'm not sure how much of an enemy I am, Sam. SHIELD's gone dark; there's no help from them."

Steve was trying to formulate a plan in his head, but he had nothing. Natasha had given him all the information that she could get on Bucky, so his first step was to read through it and see what had happened to his friend.

Sam put on his sunglasses and scanned the area. He didn't see anyone, but that didn't mean they weren't being watched.

"I think we should get out of here. Too open. Especially with Hydra…"

Steve nodded.

As they made their way back to the hole-in-the-wall motel, they were camped out in, Natasha's words bounced around in his mind. She wanted him to ask Sharon out on a date. Why? Why did that matter now?

"You're a quiet dude, Cap, but you're totally silent now. What's on your mind?" Sam asked.

Steve hesitated. It probably wasn't the big deal he was making into. But despite everything, he couldn't get it off of his mind.

"It's nothing…"

"Come on. I know we haven't known each other that long, but you can talk to me."

Steve shook his head. "Why would Natasha make me promise to ask that Sharon out?" Steve asked. "Why now?"

It wasn't what Sam expected, but he went with it.

"Maybe she thinks it would help you relax?"

"I don't think so."

"Maybe this Sharon has some kind of clue or some information you could use?" Sam asked. "Is she cute?"

Steve didn't reply. Sharon wasn't _cute_; she was beautiful. And she reminded him of someone.

"I will take you silence as a yes," Sam laughed.

He pulled the car into the motel's parking lot and cut the engine. They'd each gotten a room there a few days ago, when Steve was released from the hospital. It wasn't a nice place, but it was just outside DC, so its location was good.

"I need to see Peggy before we go anywhere," Steve said. "I'm not sure…"

"Who's Peggy?"

"She is…was…"

"Oh," Sam said. "Your girl," he said.

"She's the best," Steve said.

"Where is she?" Sam asked. "I'll take you out there."

"No, I should go alone," Steve said. "But thank you."

"I'll stay here and hold down the fort, then," Sam said, understanding this need.

Steve nodded and got into the driver's seat of the car and waited for Sam to get into his room safely.

It was then that Steve turned the car on and began the familiar trip.

He'd been going to see Peggy since he'd been taken out of the ice. Well, at first, he just waited outside her house. It had taken a month for him to work up the nerve to knock on the door.

Her nurse, Lara, was a middle aged woman and knew exactly who he was and why he was there before he'd even uttered a word. She'd pulled him by the wrist into the house with an enormous smile on her face.

As he waited for Peggy to make herself presentable that first day, he looked all around at the pictures. There were pictures all over the place.

Peggy had been married, to one of the men he'd helped save during the war and they'd had five children of their own. And they'd had a bunch of children. And now those children were having children.

There were pictures of her husband with her and the Starks – including a very young Tony. Steve smiled and wondered if he knew this one existed.

Before he could move on to the extended family, he was ushered up to Peggy's room. And sure, 70 years had passed and Peggy was now older and frail and had some health issues, she was still the woman he'd fallen in love with. And she still looked at him with the same dark eyes.

Over the last couple of months, she had deteriorated further. She couldn't remember the same way she had, even a few weeks ago.

Steve wasn't sure what he was going to tell Peggy. The organization that she'd helped create was Hydra. And it had been infiltrated from day one. Her other best friend, Howard Stark, had been killed by the operatives within SHIELD. And to top it all off, Bucky was still alive, but he was working for Hydra, too, and had been for years.

It only took twenty minutes to get to Peggy Carter's house from their secret locale versus his apartment in downtown DC that almost made it an hour. And when he parked the car in the driveway, he was still totally undecided on what he would tell her.

Steve quietly climbed out of the car and walked up to the front door. He heard singing inside – something that he'd never heard before here – as he stood and knocked.

He knocked twice and he heard a soft _'be right there'_ in response.

The door opened a moment later and the person standing there blew his mind. It was a person he'd been thinking about, but hadn't expected to see. He simply stared at her and she opened her mouth to say something, but closed it again immediately. It was Sharon. The not-nurse. She was a brunette now, but it was definitely Sharon. And she looked a hell of a lot less friendly this time.

"What are you doing here?" Steve asked.

"Um, come in," Sharon said.

She backed into the room and gave Steve some space.

"Um, hello, Captain."

"Neighbor," he replied in a much softer tone that he'd used previously with her. Despite the lies she'd used against him, he'd heard that Sharon had given Rumlow a run for his money when he was trying to launch the Project Insight helicarriers. But it didn't totally absolve her.

"Sharon," she corrected him.

"What are you doing here, Sharon?" he asked again.

"I could ask you the same thing, Captain," she replied. "And I have a feeling that my reasoning will trump yours," she said in a challenge.

He couldn't help but smile. Something about the competitiveness attracted him. But then Steve mentally shook himself; he'd come here to see Peggy, not flirt.

"Ladies first," he nodded.

"Fine," she hissed. "I'm staying with my aunt," she told him.

Steve was confused for a split second.

"Peggy is your aunt?" Steve asked.

"Well, great aunt, but…yeah."

"So you're carrying on the SHIELD tradition?"

"I _was_ carrying on the SHIELD tradition. SHIELD doesn't exist anymore. Fury's dead," she said with a sarcastic tone that said that she knew the truth about Fury. "But she doesn't know, Captain Rogers. And that's why I'm here. Just until the private security comes, then…"

"Private security," he blinked.

"Captain, you know as well as I do that Hydra took credit for the deaths of some of the highest of the high-ups in SHIELD, dating all the way back to Howard and Maria Stark…" Sharon said in a quiet voice. "And while Aunt Peggy doesn't remember much anymore, Hydra also knows that she not only helped found SHIELD, but means a hell of a lot to you."

This wasn't the woman he'd met in the hallway a few months ago. Gone was the shy, giggling blond girl was gone and this woman was so much more like her aunt. Steve was fascinated and wanted to ask a lot more questions, but they were joined in the living room before he could say anything.

"Captain Rogers!" Lara smiled. She rushed over to him from the doorway from the other room and threw her arms around him in a hug. He embraced her in an awkward hug while his eyes didn't leave Sharon.

"Sharon! You should have said something! Can I get you a drink or a snack, Captain? Are you feeling all right? I've seen the news, awful…" the woman rapid-fired at him.

"Sorry, Lara. The Captain and I were talking and I guess I forgot to say something…"

"You're always forgetting, young lady," Lara said with a snide tone. "Like, forgetting to pay your rent so you have to come stay here with your aunt…"

Steve eyed Sharon cautiously. That was the story? This woman didn't know she worked for SHIELD. So how was she going to explain private security?

"Captain, let's go see Peggy," Lara said as she took Steve by the wrist. "Sharon, you need to finish the dusting…."

"Of course, Lara," Sharon said to Lara and Steve's back as the two of them headed for the stairs.

Steve tossed Sharon one last look over his shoulder and met her eyes. He was hoping she was going to be around when he left for the day. There were a few more things he wanted to talk to Sharon about.

…

Author's note: So what do you think? Should I continue with this story? Or should I leave this route alone? Let me know! Thanks for reading!


	2. Chapter 2

Author's Note: Hello! I had no idea that this would get so much traffic! Huge thanks to the readers who have taken time to review. Hopefully you'll like this next chapter…

Hide & Seek – Chapter Two

It was hard to say what Steve Rogers was going to find when he finally walked into Peggy Carter's room. It had been a couple of weeks since he'd seen her…it had been out of his control. He'd been kept in the hospital for recovery and observation a lot longer than he'd wanted. But truthfully, Steve had no idea if Peggy would even know if he'd seen her or not.

But Lara was smiling and chattering away, so things couldn't be too bad. Steve wasn't listening to her, though, as she led him up the stairs. Steve was too busy admitting himself that he was disappointed that Sharon wasn't following them up the stairs. He wanted to talk to her more.

Just before he walked into the room, he heard the singing start up again. He smiled and followed Lara in to see Peggy.

Peggy was bright-eyed, alert and smiling when he walked in. She was holding out her arms for a hug; she was having one of her good days.

Steve gently hugged her and then sat down in the chair next to her bed.

"Can I bring you anything?" Lara asked Steve again.

"No, no. Thank you, Lara."

She smiled again. "Well, I'll leave the two of you to talk. I'll be right downstairs with Sharon," she said, adding a grimace when she said Sharon's name.

Lara left and then Steve and Peggy were alone.

"Where have you been, Steve?" Peggy asked, clear as day.

Steve should have known that Peggy would know he hadn't been there. Lara probably didn't point it out, and Sharon likely didn't either, so Peggy probably figured it out all on her own. Even at her age, Peggy was still surprising him.

He debated his options. Steve could tell her what had actually happened…and break her heart even further. Or, he could lie, and keep her feeling well.

"I was sent on a mission out of the city," Steve told her. So it wasn't a total lie. "It took me longer than I thought it was going to."

"Well, you're back again and that's all that matters," Peggy said. "Did you meet my niece?" she asked.

"Uh, Sharon?" Steve replied. "Yes, I did."

"She's such a lovely girl," Peggy smiled. "I'm glad she's dyed her hair back, though. I didn't like the blonde on her," Peggy said. "She's a SHIELD agent, you know. I'm the only one who knows though…" Peggy said as she started to trail off like she was getting tired.

"Listen, Peggy," Steve said as he recognized the signs. "Peggy, I don't know when I'm going to be able to come back and see you again," he said. "And, I wanted to say a proper goodbye this time."

Peggy's eyes were closed; she had fallen asleep again. These days, Peggy wasn't able to stay awake long.

Steve felt a pang of guilt again. If he hadn't been the subject of Project: Rebirth in 1941, he likely wouldn't still be alive right now. And he very likely would never have met Peggy in the first place.

Steve looked down at the remarkable woman in front of him. She'd been through so much and had lived her life without him. And that was the worst part. He could have had a life with her 70 years ago. Gotten married and started a family, but that obviously didn't work out. And even though there were days that he wished that he could have experienced that, he still believed that things happened for a reason. And there was no way he could regret becoming Captain America.

He stood and bent to kiss Peggy on the cheek. She smiled in her sleep, but didn't wake up again.

Steve left the room and stepped out the door and ran straight into Sharon.

"You're going after the Winter Soldier," Sharon said.

She grabbed Steve by the wrist and dragged him down the hallway towards another room. Steve had a split second to realize that he was pulled into a bedroom and it very likely was Sharon's bedroom.

"You're going after the Winter Soldier," Sharon repeated. "Right?" she said.

Steve cleared his throat and looked at her. With her dark hair and the way she was questioning him, she was the spitting image of her aunt Peggy.

"I owe it to him to figure out what happened to him," Steve explained. "He is…was…my best friend."

Sharon shook her head, but then made direct eye contact with Steve. "You're just going to take off?" Sharon said. She dropped her gaze to her feet and shook her head again. "I'm sorry; that's not what I meant. I just…" she trailed off.

"Like you said before, SHIELD is gone. Hydra has infiltrated and it's impossible to know who trust," Steve said.

"How do you know you can trust me?"

"Because of your aunt. You wouldn't be here if you weren't against Hydra," Steve said softly. "And you said you were only here until private security came in…where are you headed?"

Sharon looked over at her closed bedroom door and stepped away from Steve to wrench it open. Lara was standing at the doorway.

"Really?" Sharon complained. "Seriously?"

"You shouldn't have men in your room, Sharon. Especially Captain America."

"I'd prefer to be called Steve," he chimed in while Sharon confronted Lara.

Sharon sighed deeply and started to speak in a calm voice. "I'm sorry, Lara. I needed to talk to the Captain…_privately_…" She smiled sweetly at Lara.

"I don't think that you should have a man in your room, Sharon," Lara said again.

"We're both adults," Sharon replied. "And we were having a conversation that you were very rudely eavesdropping on."

Lara made a _humph _sound, narrowed her eyes, and gave Sharon one last look before marching away.

Sharon closed the door again and looked back at Steve who was wearing a small smirk.

"I'm the youngest…and when I came in with the story that I'd been fired, well, Lara freaked out. This family still likes to tell me what to do…" Sharon explained.

"So where are you headed?" Steve asked Sharon again.

Sharon met his eyes again. "I'm waiting to hear about a position with the CIA," Sharon said.

"From one secret agency to another?"

She cocked her head to one side. "They might not take me because of my involvement with SHIELD; they were pretty clear on that. It's not exactly like they want SHIELD agents anymore," she said. "They weren't all that keen on it before, and now…well…you know…"

"So, you're leaving DC, too. And you have no plans…"

"What are you getting at, Captain?" she said in a tone much more flirtatiously than she'd planned as she looked up at him through her eyelashes.

"You could come with Sam and me," Steve said.

"Sam Wilson," she replied. "The Falcon. He had the wings, right?" Sharon asked.

"Well, his wings were damaged in the fight, but yes, he had the wings."

Sharon nodded. "I've done some work on _Project Falcon_," she said. "I might be able to help you with that…"

"Sam said we'd gotten the _last_ prototype," Steve said.

"You _do _remember that SHIELD has lots of secrets, right?" Sharon said, smiling. "There's a top secret bunker that only a few of us knew of…"

"Can you get us in there?" Steve asked.

Sharon looked unsure. "If it hasn't been taken by Hydra, we stand a chance, but most of the other SHIELD facilities, including the Fridge…"

Steve looked like he had no idea what she was talking about.

"Different SHIELD facilities all over the world. The Fridge was where SHIELD was keeping a majority of the real bad prisoners, as well as some of the different evidence picked up by the travel teams. It was hit by Hydra a few days ago. They released everyone and took all of the supplies. And they were headed back here for the Cube, but apparently Coulson and his team were able to stop it."

"Coulson?"

She waved off his question. "That's a story for another time."

"So can you get us into this other facility?" Steve asked. "Where is it?"

"Nebraska," Sharon replied.

"So, Sharon? Will you go to Nebraska with me?" Steve asked.

They stood and stared at one another for a minute in silence. The air was tense around them and it was partially from the topic of discussion but also from the attraction that had been there when they'd first met in their apartment building's hallway was still there.

Neither of them knew what was going to happen, but they'd never know if Sharon didn't say yes.

"When do we leave?" Sharon said.

…

A/N: Let me know what you thought! Please?


	3. Chapter 3

Author's Note: Thank you much to those who have read the previous chapters and to those who have sent a review. I appreciate everyone who has added me as a favorite or follow! Here is the next chapter!

Hide & Seek – Chapter Three

"…Wait! She said that another pair of the Project Falcon wings exist?" Sam asked.

"That's _all_ you got from that?" Steve replied.

Steve had been back at the motel for almost an hour replaying the conversation he had shared with Sharon Carter.

"I'm sorry, man. But this is big! I'll actually be able to help you if we find the Winter Soldier," he said.

"When…when we find _Bucky_," Steve corrected him.

"To have been so close and then have it taken away…" Sam said growing quiet. "It's not like they can take your abilities away from you."

Steve shrugged. "I don't know about that, Sam. It could go as easily as it came to me."

"It came easily?" Sam said with a smirk. Sam had seen the re-enactment of the application of the super-soldier serum that played on a loop at the Smithsonian. It was a painful process, but Steve always downplayed it when questioned.

"Anyway…" Steve began. "Sharon is going to meet us…"

"She's going to take us to the SHIELD facility and help get us the wings?" Sam asked.

"That is the current plan, yes."

"Step two: ask her out."

"I'm going to bed," Steve said as he rose from the motel room's chair. "We leave at oh-six-hundred to meet Sharon."

"Where are we headed?"

"First stop is Nebraska," Steve said before he opened the door and left the motel room.

Out in the now-cool night air, Steve finally let himself exhale the breath he hadn't realized that he'd been holding in. Honestly, it had been a relief to finally say goodbye to Peggy properly. And, who knows, it might not be their final goodbye. She'd held on this long, perhaps Stark or another scientist would be able to create some way to help her. Steve wished that there was more of the serum…he'd gladly share it with Peggy right now.

But he was also relieved to have an ally in Peggy's niece, Sharon.

He walked to his own motel room and let himself in. It wasn't anything fancy…bed, TV and a bathroom. But it was all he needed.

Sharon was physically attractive, yes, but she also had an attitude to which he was drawn. She knew she had to protect her aunt Peggy and no one was going to stop her. She dropped everything, including her own safety and security, to go move in with both her great-aunt Peggy and her widowed aunt Lara.

Steve and Sharon only talked a moment more before he left. Sharon said that her uncle Richard, Peggy's youngest son, had been married to Lara and he died about fifteen years ago. Lara moved in…Peggy had insisted…and the two looked after one another until Peggy became bed-ridden.

He'd watched Sharon talk and he occasionally caught a hint of Peggy's English accent as well as the same proud and determined look in her eye. And with her now-dark hair, the family resemblance was really there.

Steve changed and got ready for bed. He needed as much sleep as he could get; they would only be going as far as Nebraska. And he wasn't sure when he'd be sleeping next after they got there. Who knows what they were going to find when they got there.

…

Steve Rogers' alarm on his phone went off far earlier than he would have liked. It was four-thirty and he'd had a restless sleep. At one point, he was simply laying in the bed, staring at the cracks in the ceiling.

But, being the soldier he was, he dutifully rose from the bed and got ready for the day.

And hour later, he was paying for his room at the reception desk. Sam joined him a few minutes later.

"Do we have time for breakfast?" Sam asked. His stomach gave a vicious growl that made the woman at the desk giggle. Sam smiled back at her. "Goldfish from the vending machine won't hold my empty stomach," he explained her.

She giggled again and handed Steve a receipt before processing Sam's bill.

"There's a really great diner just a few miles down the road from here. They have the best hash browns," the woman said as she smiled sweetly at Sam.

"Thanks," he smiled back.

Steve rolled his eyes and carried his duffel out of the stuffy reception office and out into the early morning sun. He popped the trunk on his car and threw the bag in before checking his watch. They had to meet Sharon in fifteen minutes.

No time for breakfast, he thought to himself. On cue, his own stomach grumbled loudly in protest. Maybe they would have some time once they met Sharon.

…

Steve and Sam were to meet Sharon at a busy park and ride lot that was on the outskirts of the city. It was already almost full as they pulled into the lot and it was momentarily difficult to find Sharon amongst the sea of commuter cars.

But after five minutes of circling, Steve spotted her. She finished wiping the door handle of the car and Sam jumped out to grab her bag from her.

"Thanks," Sharon said as she shoved her sunglasses back up her nose. She didn't want anyone, especially these two, to see how bleary-eyed she actually was that morning. A few days of sleeping-in had totally ruined her early morning routine.

She was climbing into the back seat when Sam stopped her. She'd been hoping just to crash in the back until she totally woke up.

"You can have shotgun," Sam said. "I'm going to sleep anyway. At least you can keep Cap company," he said. "I'm Sam…Wilson, by the way," he said as he extended his hand.

She smiled and surveyed the man whose hand she was now shaking.

"Sharon Carter," she said. "Nice to meet you, Sam. And I'm good with the back seat."

"I insist," Sam said.

"No, thanks. I'm really fine," she said firmly as she slid into the back seat.

"Will you get in, Sam?" Steve asked. "I'd prefer to not draw any more attention to us."

Sam complied. He did his best to give Cap and Sharon a chance, but it appeared that she was grouchy in the morning. But he didn't see that Sharon had removed her sunglasses behind him and had met Steve's eyes in the rearview mirror and she smiled at him.

"Good morning, Captain," Sharon said as Steve pulled out of the parking lot and onto the road to the highway.

"Good morning, Agent Carter," he said as he wore a smile. It should probably have felt weird, to talk to someone else as Agent Carter, but it didn't. It felt good. And somehow, it felt right.

But a soon as the greetings and introductions were made, the car fell silent.

That was until Sam couldn't stand the silence after a while.

"So, Sharon," he began as he turned around in his seat. "How long have you been with SHIELD?"

"Almost ten years," she replied, not looking up from what she was reading.

"Whatcha reading?" Sam asked.

She sighed and held it to where he could see it. "It's the hard copy of the blueprints of the facility in Nebraska. It's underground. I'm looking for a weak-entry point."

"Wait…do we know if it's been taken by Hydra?"

"At this point, we assume anything and everything that SHIELD had is now Hydra," Steve told him.

"While we were able to keep some secrets, because Fury is _very_ good at that, any of the main facilities have most likely been hit. And walking in won't be an option," Sharon said.

"You said you knew for sure a couple had been confirmed?" Steve said.

"Yes, SHIELD's facility, called the Fridge, where we were keeping the worst of the worst was opened up…all the ammunitions and tech were taken and the prisoners released back out into the world. And I'm told they weren't able to rehabilitate most of them. So now, they're just pissed off even more than they were."

"That's not good," Steve said. "Did you find anything worth noting on the blueprints?"

Sharon took a breath. "Morally, how do you feel about blowing up part of a SHIELD facility?" Sharon asked Steve.

He caught her gaze in the rearview mirror again.

"Well, technically I've already done that, so…" he trailed off.

"I was still inside it," Sam said with no humor in his voice.

"I wish I could say I was sorry, but you know…" Steve replied.

"You know, you aren't the boy scout I thought you were," Sam laughed finally.

They hadn't known each other that long, but Steve and Sam had become fast friends. It made Sharon happy to maybe, one day, be a part of their group.

Sharon looked down at her store bought GPS unit. She'd needed this new one; it couldn't possibly track her. It showed that they only had 17 more hours left until their destination.

…

A/n: thank you! Please review!


	4. Chapter 4

Author's note: You are all the best! Thank you very much for the kind words! Hopefully you like this one, too!

Hide & Seek – Chapter Four

Eight hours into the trip, Sam was asleep in the back seat and Sharon was driving the car. Steve was in the passenger seat, looking at the countryside as they drove through.

"Have you had a chance to see the states since…you know…?" Sharon asked.

"A lot of the missions that I've been sent on were outside the US. Actually, they all were, save for one or two."

Silence fell over the car again for a few minutes. There had been a few times of awkward silences in the first part of their trip, but it wasn't anything they couldn't handle.

"It's been since the forties that I've had an opportunity to see the different parts of the country."

"Oh, right. They sent you around to different cities to promote the government and war bonds, right?" Sharon said.

"The origin of the suit and shield…" he told her with a small smirk. "I got sent overseas to talk to the troops, too," he explained. "And it was on one of those 'rally the troops' trips when I ended up going after the 107th…"

"And somehow you singlehandedly saved all those men," Sharon said with admiration in her voice that she couldn't hide. Her quietness was beginning to fade and she was finally getting more comfortable with him. "I'm familiar with the story."

"The Smithsonian exhibit…"

Sharon laughed. "Well, there _is_ that. But you're part of the high school history curriculum and I have heard plenty of first-hand accounts from my Aunt Peggy."

Steve looked at her with disbelief in his eyes. "What?" He believed the part that Peggy told Sharon stories; he didn't think he'd be in a history book.

"You don't believe me?" Sharon replied. "I mean, it wasn't Captain America-centric, but you are a huge part of the World War II unit in most high school history curriculums."

Steve sat silent for a beat, then finally replied.

"I don't know if I should be flattered or…"

"Well, since I don't know how you feel about the fact that there are before and after pictures in the particular text book that I had, I would go with the 'or' alternative," Sharon smiled. "But Aunt Peggy had your _original_ army picture framed on the mantle for my entire childhood, so I was familiar."

"Well, I suppose they couldn't ask me for my permission," he finally laughed. "I was a little out of commission for a while."

"I was there when you woke up, do you remember that?"

Steve had done his best to forget waking up in the SHIELD's version of a 1940's Brooklyn hospital room. He didn't like it. But usually he remembered faces and it sincerely bothered him to have forgotten the dark-haired woman in the forties get-up. He'd been so angry at everything that he hadn't paid the woman any more mind.

In his silence, Sharon began again. "You don't," she smirked. "I had to kick Coulson out. Almost had to _actually_ kick him…"

"I'm sorry, that day was kind of a blur and…"

"And you ran through a wall…"

"I should apologize. It was nothing personal…"

The woman's face finally came back to him. He thought he never forgot a face, but he had. But when he thought about it…it _was_ Sharon.

"I thought when I met you in the apartment hallway that I recognized you and I couldn't place you. Then when I found out that you were related to Peggy…but…yeah…you _were_ there," Steve said, smiling. "How did you manage to get stuck with babysitting me?"

"I pulled some strings – I have a little pull within SHIELD as I am related to a founder…" Sharon explained. "Fury recruited me right out high school. Graduation day, actually…" she said. "How could I refuse? Gave me a change to carry on the family legacy and it got me away from my family…"

"Not so good?" Steve asked.

"It wasn't like I lived a deprived life, far from it, actually. I think my parents were too involved…" Sharon said before realizing that he lost both his parents and any remaining family had long since been gone. "I'm sorry…I don't know why I'm telling you all of this. It's probably boring you to tears and I've probably simultaneously offended you."

"It's okay…" Steve said. "I've come to terms with my circumstances; some of them long ago, others more recently.'

Sharon pulled off of the highway at a rest stop. It had been three hours and she had to stretch her legs.

As the car came to a stop, Sam woke up and their cone of silence was broken.

"Is this Nebraska?" he said sleepily.

'No," both Sharon and Steve answered together.

"Rest stop in Indiana," Steve said.

"Oh, okay," he said and went back to sleep.

"I guess he won't be taking the next leg of the driving," Sharon laughed. "I just need to walk around for a few minutes," Sharon told Steve as they climbed out of the car and walked towards the building. It was about three in the afternoon as they walked around.

"I think my butt fell asleep," she laughed.

Steve's eyes accidentally fell and he found himself checking her out. He was in jeans and a long sleeve t-shirt that showed off a lot more of her shape than the scrubs did. He shook himself and continued to follow her.

There was a family milling around a picnic table and another car pulled into the lot when Steve and Sharon moved away from their car. Soon after another minivan hauling a pop-up trailer pulled in and a zillion kids hurried out and past them.

One small child bumped into Steve as he ran and turned to apologize. There was a flash of recognition in the kid's eyes, but he had elsewhere to be; he tore off toward his siblings and the bathrooms.

Steve smiled awkwardly and pulled the hat on his head down further over his eyes.

"Do you think he recognized me?" Steve asked.

Sharon nodded. "Kids seem to retain faces. And since you've been saving the world since you were un-frozen…"

"Thawed out?" he offered.

"I dislike using the word 'thaw' when it comes to humans…" Sharon said. "It's a personal preference."

The sound of a shoe scuffing on the cement behind them caught Steve's attention and then Sharon's. He turned slightly to see behind himself. A man and woman were walking behind them, slowly.

"It's beautiful out here, isn't it, honey?" Steve said, the words sounding foreign on his tongue. But he covered well and smiled down at her.

She took a split second to catch up to his train of thought and slipped her arm around his. They continued to walk with their arms looped as they approached the bathroom building.

"It sure beats the city. I'll bet you'd be able to see star out here," Sharon said.

"Yeah, you were right about driving out there instead of flying," Steve smiled down at her genuinely.

Sharon playfully hit the bill of his baseball bat cap. "You just said I was right," she giggled.

Steve decided that he really liked the sound of her laugh. He wanted to hear more of it.

"There's a first time for everything, right?" Steve said as he caught the man's eye. It was clear that they were watching Steve and Shannon.

Steve took a chance and while they were stopped, he bent down and kissed Sharon full on the lips.

The 'couple' behind them watched uncomfortably for a second before they continued past them and whispered something to each other before splitting into the different bathrooms in the building.

Once the people were inside the bathrooms, Steve broke the kiss and looked down at Sharon.

"Sorry, it just…"

Sharon shook her head and tried to get her voice to work. "No, it's…fine…" she said. She was breathless. She was trying to regain her balance and failing. She'd be lying if she said she never imagined kissing Captain America.

"Do you think they've been following us since DC?" Sharon asked as she looked around.

"They _were _pretty interested in us," Steve said.

"Do you think they're…?"

"I'd rather not take any chances," Steve said.

The man came out of the bathroom and did a horrible job of covering the fact that he was watching Steve and Sharon.

"I'm going to go after the woman," Sharon said. She put her hand to his cheek and pulled him down for a kiss to further distract the man who was watching them. He turned away and Sharon slipped away before Steve could protest her going after the woman alone.

And when he turned back from watching after Sharon, the man was in front of him.

"No shield today, Cap?" the man said.

Steve thought he recognized him as one of Rumlow's men from DC, but he couldn't be sure. And he also realized he didn't care.

"Don't need it," he said confidently.

Steve braced himself for whatever could be coming at him. Who knew what bag of tricks this guy had on him.

The man drew a knife and swung at Cap. He was good, but he wasn't _that_ good. He was fast, but Steve was faster. He landed a couple hits, but Steve knocked the knife out of the man's hand and it flew into the grass. Steve hit the guy twice and he fell unconscious to the ground.

Steve dragged him out of the way and moved to go help Sharon.

He heard grunting and a scream from the women's bathroom as he dashed for the door. He opened it just in time to see Sharon back the woman, who had her hands wrapped around Sharon's throat, into what was left of the broken sink and up against the wall. The other woman collided with the cement wall and there was an audible thud. Sharon was able to move her elbow up and force the woman's head back into the mirror behind them both. It shattered all over the both of them and the woman, now-unconscious, released Sharon.

"Thanks for the help," Sharon said as she wiped the blood off of her lip. It was already swelling from the one punch she'd let the other woman give to her face.

"You _had_ that," Steve said. "I couldn't have done it any better," he smirked.

The other woman slumped to the floor of the bathroom.

"These two clearly weren't first string," Sharon said as she observed the non-rumpled or bleeding Captain America before her. "What should we do with them?"

Steve forced open the janitorial closet that was inside the women's restroom. There would be plenty of room for the both of them. While Steve went to go get the man he'd left around the back of the bathhouse building, Sharon dug through the janitor's closet and first tied up the woman's wrists and ankles and checked all of her pockets. She took her cellphone and the waited for Steve.

All of the other cars, except their car and the Hydra car, were gone. Sam was still sleeping in the back seat when they climbed back in; this time, with Steve back at the wheel.

He woke up and sleepily looked at them both. He saw Sharon's fat, bleeding lip first.

"Did I miss something?" Sam asked.

…

Author's note: Please let me know what you thought! Thanks!


	5. Chapter 5

Hide & Seek – Chapter Five

Sharon Carter yawned and sent the yawn around the car – twice. Steve Rogers, Sam Wilson and Sharon had been in the car for fifteen hours and the sun was beginning to set.

"Should we find a place to stay and then get an early start tomorrow?" Sharon asked. "Or, you know, we can just keep going and…" Sharon trailed off as she yawned again. "I don't know why I'm so tired," she told them.

Sam was driving and he turned his head for a split second to look at Steve. "What do you think, Cap?"

"I think she's tired because of the fight she was in a couple hours ago," he said.

When no one laughed, he continued on. "I think we should find a motel or something and get some sleep."

So far no one had followed them, but they also had gone way out of their original path to make sure that they hadn't. They would be just outside Nebraska, but because of their enormous detour, they were in Oklahoma.

"Oklahoma is…" Sharon said.

"I think I like it," Steve said. "Lots of wide open…"

A bird came flying directly at them as Sam steered towards the exit off of the highway. Last minute the bird swooped up and over the car and Sam brought the car to a total stop at the stop sign.

"That bird had a death wish," Sam said.

"And it seems he changed his mind," Steve replied. "Sign said there was lodging this way," he pointed to the left.

Sam followed direction and turned the car left.

Sharon returned to being quiet and Steve looked behind him to see if she had fallen asleep. Instead, he found her awake and messing with a cellphone and looking annoyed.

"What are you doing?" Steve asked.

"The woman's phone…she had a really easy password to break into the phone itself, but none of the apps I want into are as simple. I _did_ turn off GPS location on both phones so they can't track us that way."

"Good thinking."

"Now if I could just figure out what the password is…she had a standard issue SHIELD phone, but it looks like it's had some modifications that aren't so standard."

"What's that?" Steve asked, still turned around to look at Sharon.

Sharon maneuvered the end of the device and a pill of some kind popped out in the palm of her other hand.

"Cyanide," Sharon said. "It seems that the cyanide tablet is _still_ Hydra standard issue."

"Not keeping it in a tooth anymore, though?" Steve said. He'd seen his fair share of Hydra agents yell 'Hail Hydra' and then use the poison on themselves.

"Aunt Peggy said there were too many accidental deaths," Sharon said. "It's not like all Hydra agents were rocket scientists."

"Just most of them," Steve said. "At least they were the first time around."

Light of a city appeared on the horizon.

"So, any preference?" Sam said.

"One that doesn't look like it has bedbugs," Sharon replied.

"The lady has spoken," Sam said, smiling.

He was the most awake and it was only because of his serious nap for several hours of the trip.

Sam had sort of been disappointed that he'd missed out on the action, but he figured that there _would_ be more. And now he was enjoying watching Steve and Sharon interact. He had a feeling something else had happened, but neither of them was forthcoming with details. He figured he would question Steve later when Sharon wasn't listening.

A phone in the backseat to ring and Sharon answered the call.

Being that they only heard one side, it was hard to tell who she was talking to. But it seemed to really annoy her.

"It's not like that…" Sharon said into the phone. "No, it's not. You and I already talked about this, Josh."

Steve and Sam shared a look. Josh? Who was Josh?

"No, stop calling me," she said into the phone before disconnecting the call.

She sighed audibly, but didn't say anything.

Steve didn't want to ask questions about her personal life, despite that the fact that he _really_ did want to know, so he sat quietly. However, Sam was more curious and much less discrete.

"Am I right to assume that's your boyfriend?" Sam asked.

"Ex. Ex-boyfriend. Mistake. Huge, huge…" she trailed off and offered no more explanation. She simply went back to playing with the phone in her hand.

Sam turned and gave an encouraging smile to Steve. Steve rolled his eyes and said nothing.

…

They passed at least a dozen hotels, none of which had any vacancies. At the end of the main road, they finally found a place that their sign indicated a vacancy.

Each of them hauled in their own bag and Sharon smiled at the older woman behind the reception desk. She eyed Sharon, and her fat lip, suspiciously.

"What happened to your lip, dear?" the nosey woman asked.

Sharon laughed.

"What's so funny? Did one of these men hurt you, dear?"

Sharon laughed harder while Steve wore a look of total horror on his face.

"No. These men _did not _hurt me," Sharon replied. "Do you have three rooms?"

"Uhm, three?"

"Yes," Sharon hissed.

"Well, yes…"

The woman slowly went about sorting out the rooms and put the keys on the counter between them one at a time. Eventually they each had a room and the directions to the stairs.

They climbed the stairs and Sam found his room on one side of the hall; Steve and Sharon had rooms directly across the hall from Sam and right next to one another.

The three of them bid each other good night and retreated to their rooms. It wasn't until they'd each spread their things out that Steve and Sharon learned about their rooms.

The both of them opened the door to the bathroom and discovered that they were sharing it.

"Huh," Sharon said as she looked at Steve across the room.

"She conveniently left this bit of information out," Steve said.

"There is no reason why two adults cannot share a bathroom," Sharon said. "Unless you can think of any."

It wasn't that he _couldn't_ share. Of course he could and he_ would._ But as the two of them had only shared a hallway, a car and a brief kiss, it didn't make for an ideal situation.

"You look uncertain. I promise I don't hog the bathroom. I shared with three of my sisters when I was kid. And as the youngest, I had to learn to use my time wisely," she told him.

"Sounds rough," he smiled.

"I grew up in a huge family. I shared a bathroom with three older sisters who figured their hair and curling their eyelashes," Sharon said as she put her toiletry bag on the counter.

"See? Only one bag. All of the rest of the counter is yours, Captain," she smiled up at him.

"That is very kind of you."

"Well, you catch more flies with honey than vinegar," Sharon smiled. "And as long as we don't bump our heads while we brush our teeth, I think we'll be okay."

She smiled once more at Steve and dashed back into her room. Smooth, Sharon.

What was she doing? She certainly shouldn't be flirting with him. Besides, he likely had zero interest in her. It would be weird to date the man her aunt Peggy had hoped to marry someday, even if it was Captain America.

She quickly changed her clothes into a pair of yoga pants and a tank top. She found herself wondering what Steve slept in and she shook herself.

_Friends, Sharon_, she told herself.

_Only friends._

Even if he were interested in her, it would never work out anyway.

Sharon finished talking to herself and went back to the bathroom door. She decided it was best to knock and Steve called for her to come in.

She cautiously opened the door and found out exactly what Steve had decided to sleep in. Grey sweats and a tank top that showed all of his muscles. He was brushing his teeth.

He spit out the last of his tooth paste and rinsed his brush off.

"You should probably get some ice for your lip. We don't want your whole face to bruise," he told her.

Sharon waved him off as she pulled her dark hair into a ponytail. "Oh, I'll be fine. It isn't the first time. I've taken a few hits to the face in my lifetime."

"Well, if it make you feel better, you're still beautiful with a fat lip," Steve said before brushing a deep shade of red and turning for the door quickly.

Sharon smiled so wide as he turned that she managed to open the wound on her lip again.

"Sometimes I'm such a klutz," she said as she grabbed a towel to hold to her face. Steve turned to see her holding it to her face.

"I'm going to get you some ice. Will you be okay?" he asked her, a concerned look on her face.

"As long as you aren't gone a long time," she said in an out of character tone.

He smiled. "Don't worry. This trip to the ice won't be nearly as long as my last one."

…

Author's Note: I'm sorry it's taken so long for me to update this story. I have had some life things to deal with lately and they have not only given me a mental block but I just haven't had enough time to sit down and write.

Hopefully, you'll all forgive me and let me know what you thought of this chapter.


	6. Chapter 6

Hide & Seek – Chapter Six

The following morning, Steve was woken up by the sound of someone pounding on his hotel room door. Once awake, he was aware that someone else was on the bed next to him and there was a small moan that came from her lips as she awoke to the pounding, too.

"What time is it?" she asked as she slowly sat up. It was then that Steve remembered giving her a long sleep shirt when she got cold during their conversation. He was afraid if she got up, she wouldn't come back.

Steve took his eyes off of Sharon for a split second to check the time. It was ten AM. He'd never slept so late in his time.

"Ten," Steve replied.

"Oh," she said as she struggled for other words. "I guess I can't complain about it being too early…" she decided.

Now was awkward. But last night hadn't been. They had sat up talking through most of the night; like old friends and apparently they had just fallen asleep together just like that.

"I guess he had kind of a late night," Steve said as he stood to walk to the door.

Without thinking, he opened it and Sam started in on him immediately.

"Seriously, I was starting to think you'd died in here and then Sharon isn't answering her door…" he trailed off as he saw Sharon in Cap's shirt still sitting on the edge of the bed. "Good morning, Sharon."

"Morning, Sam," she said as she blushed a deep shade of pink. She really wished Steve had let her run back to her room before he had opened the door.

"I am just going to wait for you both downstairs. Checkout is at eleven, so…"

Steve shook his head. "Sam, it's not what…" But Sam wasn't going to listen. He shot Steve a devious grin and turned to head for the stairs.

Steve could do nothing but close the door and hope that Sharon wasn't furious behind him. He braced himself, but she surprised him by starting to laugh.

He turned to look at her with an amused look on his face. "What's so funny?"

"Well, we could get all embarrassed that Sam thinks something happened between you and I or…we could laugh about it. I don't know about you, but I don't feel embarrassed."

Steve was at a loss. He stood silently.

"And I had a good time talking with you, Steve," Sharon said. "Do you want to shower first?"

It took a second for Steve to catch up with her train of thought, but shook his head a moment later in response.

"Go ahead, please. Ladies first," he smiled.

Sharon smiled and pulled the long sleeve shirt she'd borrowed from Steve off and folded it quickly and neatly next to Steve on the bed.

"Thank you," she smiled.

She headed for the bathroom and closed Steve's side behind her.

Before he'd met Peggy Carter, Steve was certain that there was no woman who was going to find Steve Rogers worth their time. They all seemed to like Captain America, though.

And since he'd come out of the ice, he'd definitely put up a wall to keep those 'Captain America fans' out. Until now. Now he hoped he'd found another connection like he'd had with Peggy…in fact, he was almost certain he had.

Sharon was smart and funny. And tough and beautiful. And she'd fallen asleep next to him on his bed, so she trusted him. And that thought made him grin like an idiot.

….

It was five minutes to eleven when both Sharon and Steve emerged from their own rooms. Sharon and Steve moved silently, but amiably, down to the lobby.

"I'll check us out," Sharon said.

"I'll take your bag out to the car," he said as he reached for her small duffel.

Sharon smiled at him and let him take the bag.

"I'll be out in a minute. Thank you," she said as he moved to the door.

Things should probably be awkward, but Sharon felt nothing but comfort as she waited for the woman to figure out their bill on the ancient computer.

Steve moved to the car outside where Sam was leaning and sipping a coffee drink.

"I would have gotten one for you, but I don't think you drink coffee, do you?"

"No, never touched the stuff," Steve said as he opened the trunk of the vehicle.

"So?" Sam grinned. "Tell me…"

Steve shook his head. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Dude, you're a terrible liar. What happened with Sharon?" he prodded.

Steve shook his head. "Nothing happened. And even if it had, I wouldn't go around talking about it."

"I know, I know. You're not that kind of guy," Sam said.

"It's just not something I'm used to talking about and I'm sure…"

"What _was_ she in your shirt then?"

"We're still talking about this…"

"You said _nothing_ happened. She was in your room in your shirt, man. I'm just curious."

"What do you think happened, Sam?" Sharon smiled.

In their discussion, neither of them had seen Sharon walk up to them.

"I...uh…we…" Sam stammered.

"Sharon, I…" Steve began.

She held up her hand and smiled. "Relax, Captain. I'm just messing with Wilson here. No worries. Ready to go?"

Sam took a deep breath and then moved to get in the backseat. "I'll ride back here; someone else can drive," he said sheepishly.

"Do you want to drive or would you like me to take the first leg?" Sharon asked Steve.

"Sharon, I hadn't said…"

"Steve," Sharon looked up at him. "I know, I trust you. I hope you trust me, too."

He nodded yes. "And I can drive first. Ride up first with me?"

Sharon smiled. "Of course."

…

They had no sooner gotten on the road when Sam's phone rang. And while they could only hear Sam's half of the conversation, Steve and Sharon both knew he'd gotten bad news. His normal grin was gone and had been replaced with the saddest face they'd seen in a long while.

Steve immediately pulled the car off the road.

"What's going on?"

"My uncle died," Sam said quietly. "Funeral is tomorrow in North Carolina."

"Then we need to get you to an airport," Steve said.

"I'll use the GPS to find us the closest airport," Sharon said as she pulled the equipment out of her bag at her feet.

"I'm so sorry, Sam," Steve said.

"He was my favorite uncle. I went into the military because of him," Sam said. "I didn't even know he was sick. I guess I've been busy…" he trailed off.

"What happened?"

"Cancer, I guess."

Sharon turned around in her seat and reached to squeeze Sam's hand. "I'm so sorry, Sam."

"I can't go, though. I…"

"No, you have to go," Steve said. "Sharon and I can go to Nebraska and get the wings from the SHIELD facility and you can join us later. You need to be with your family," Steve told him.

"No, I need to…' Sam began.

"That's an order, soldier," Steve said in his much more official tone.

"Really?" Sam said cracking a small smile.

"I'm not joking," Steve said.

"Closest airport is about thirty five miles from here. Take a right up here at the light and follow the interstate around," Sharon told Steve. "Where in North Carolina?"

"Charlotte."

Sharon got to work on the tablet she had with her while Steve steered the car back on the main road.

"Okay, your flight is booked, Mr. Wilson," she said after a few minutes. "I wish I could put you on a private jet, but my access is limited as of right now."

"Thank you, Sharon."

Forty-five minutes later, Steve had brought them to the terminal and they were saying goodbye to Sam.

"Take care of your family, man," Steve said as he clapped Sam on the shoulder.

"Keep me posted on what happens with you know where," Sam said.

"Of course," Sharon said as she pulled him down to her for a hug.

They didn't know each other all that well you, but Sharon liked Sam a lot. And she felt awful that he'd lost someone he'd been close with.

"Take care, Sam," Steve said before Sam moved to board the plane.

"And then there were two," Sharon smiled.

"How far are we from the location?" Steve asked as they walked out of the airport back to where they had parked the car.

"About five hours," she replied.

Steve looked down at his watch. It was about one thirty.

"We could get there, check it out and then wait for nightfall to go in," Sharon said. "Unless you have a better plan, Captain."

"Sounds perfect," he said as he unlocked the car. "Which way do we go?"

…

Author's note: Thanks for the reviews for the last chapter. Let me know what you think of this one!


	7. Chapter 7

Hide & Seek – Chapter Seven

"I don't mean to sound like I'm doubting you, Sharon, but this is the middle of nowhere," Steve said quietly.

"You don't have to whisper. We're the only ones here," Sharon told him. "See that barn?" Sharon pointed into the rapidly darkening horizon.

Steve nodded as his gaze followed her arm to where she was pointing in the distance.

"Entrance to the underground facility. It's the only way in or out," Sharon said. "But because we don't know if it's full of friendlies or not. I don't want to drive up and beep the horn to announce our presence." 

"I don't think that if they're enemies they'll be too pleased to see Captain America arrive by any means."

"I don't think I care," Sharon smirked at him in the partial darkness.

Despite the sun setting, it was still not. Incredibly hot, actually. Cloud cover increased and the humidity had to be at almost one hundred percent. The two of them were sweating simply by standing there. Sharon was tempted to strip down to her tank top but decided against it. Steve, however, used the bottom of his shirt to wipe off his sweaty face and gave Sharon a clear view of his well-muscled abdomen. She had to quit thinking of him like that. It wasn't fair to either of them.

"I'll be the first to admit that I don't know anything about the weather in the Midwest, but this looks like a storm coming," Sharon said as she looked at the still-darkening skies around them.

"And not just a quick rain shower," Steve agreed. "Nebraska is tornadoes, too, right?"

"I think so," Sharon said. "Which is yet another reason that this one was built underground."

"So…the plan: get in before the storm hits. Best case…they're friendly, let us stay overnight so we don't get sucked up in a tornado. Worst case…"

"They shoot us dead upon arrival," Sharon told him.

"I see you're being optimistic," Steve smirked.

"Always find that silver lining…"

A bolt of lightning struck and lit up the area around them and three seconds later the thunder rumbled. All in the direction they were needing to head in.

"Awesome," Sharon said under her breath.

"Afraid you'll melt in the rain?"

"Uh, sure," Sharon said.

They finished grabbing what they needed from the car and carefully removed all traces of themselves in case Hydra, or anyone else found the vehicle. It was unknown if they would make it back and at this point, the only person who knew they were out there was Sam Wilson.

…

The barn that served as the entrance to the SHIELD base was only a mile or so from where they had left the car, but the storm that had been more than three miles away when they started, had now picked up momentum and both Steve and Sharon were soaked through almost instantly.

"Well, at least it isn't hailing," Steve said in a semi-optimistic tone.

He paused for a half-second to brush the hair that had become plastered to his forehead out of his eyes. "And at least it's sort of cooling down."

It had probably dropped ten degrees since the storm had hit, so Sharon's mind began to refocus on the mission ahead instead of the tornado she was sure was coming.

In the time that Steve had stopped, he looked at Sharon. She hadn't complained once since this whole thing had begun. In fact, she volunteered herself for this. She certainly _was_ Peggy Carter's niece, no doubt about it. The same drive and motivation.

The two of them continued moving and soon, in the storm that was beginning to wane, she and Steve were within feet of the secluded SHIELD Midwestern base.

"I don't suppose we just knock…"

Sharon laughed and waited for the hand scanner to pop out. Even in the rain, the sensors picked up their presence and alerted whoever was inside that they were standing there.

It scanned Sharon's palm and identified her as a SHIELD agent. The door opened a moment later and it led to a long hallway.

Steve and Sharon hurriedly stepped in out of the rain and the barn door slammed closed behind them.

"That's not ominous at all," Sharon muttered under her breath.

"Did I read that right? Clearance level nine?" Steve asked.

"Uh, yes," Sharon said.

"I was only level eight," Steve said.

"They bumped me up when I was assigned to protect you," she replied quietly. "But I was the only one who knew it. Everyone else thought I was still six. Not that it really matters."

Sharon got quiet as she heard footsteps. Immediately both she and Steve froze, waiting for whatever about to happen.

A man, dressed in a dark suit carrying an enormous gun came around the corner a second later. He had an intense look on his face until he recognized both Sharon and Steve Rogers.

"Sharon? Oh, I am so pleased to see you!" the man shouted as he placed his gun on the ground.

He was probably almost forty, with a Cherubic pink face. And now he was wearing a huge smile.

"Jerry!" Sharon said. "This is where they stationed you?"

"Been here almost three years now," he said. "Status quo for almost that whole time. Well, until, well, you know better than I do about all that business in DC," Jerry said. "Oh, geez. Listen to me going on about all this to Captain America…"

"Steve Rogers," Steve corrected him as he extended his hand to shake the other man's.

"Of course, Captain Rogers," the man said. "Gerald Johns. My friends used to call me Jerry," he said. "Let's get you both warmed up and dried off," he said. "Follow me."

Within the hour, Sharon and Steve were set up with dry clothes and were in Jerry's office.

"So it's been just you here all this time?" Steve asked.

"Yup, you're the first visitors I've had since Fury came a week after I started," Jerry said. "And it's been okay. But since the attack on the Triskellion in DC, well…"

"It wasn't really a blatant attack on SHIELD," Sharon said.

"We found that there were hundreds, maybe thousands of Hydra sleeper agents within the SHIELD ranks," Steve explained.

"That's why Fury put me here, in charge of this base. Even that long ago he expected something, some kind of resurgence. I couldn't even tell my family a vague location for peace of mind. And he told me that you all might be dropping in soon."

Steve and Sharon looked at one another and then back to Jenny.

"What?" Sharon asked. "I thought you…and Fury's d…"

"Dead? He told me to ID him as alive to you both. Fury thought if I told you both he was alive, then you'd know you could trust me. Also, he wanted me to play you this…"

He turned to pull up something on a computer monitor to his left.

It cycled through something quickly, then Fury appeared to them.

"Cap, I knew Sharon would bring ya here. Hopefully you're both all right. What you're after here, providing Johns hasn't played with it too much, is kept in the vault further underground. However, the bad news is that the set kept here is only partially functional. SHIELD acquired a prototype setthe bad news is that the set kept here is only partially functional. SHIELD acquired a prototype setthe bad news is that the set kept here is only partially functional. SHIELD acquired a prototype set, so you'll be able to have the wings, you'll just have to find someone to fix 'em up for you. They were designed by Stark Industries…" Fury's video told them. "I think that's all I needed to tell you. And while you won't know where I am, I've got my eye on you."

The video ended and Sharon laughed.

"What's so funny?" Steve asked.

"It just always seems like he's a dozen steps ahead. He's always been good like that."

Steve shook his head. "I don't know how he does it and I have quit asking the questions," Steve said. "So we should probably get a move on, so…where can we find the wings?"

An hour later, Steve and Jerry came back from the eighth floor underground with the prototype wings in tow. It was more like a bag full of the pieces that would eventually make up the wings. It was definitely a far cry from the 'partially functional' that Fury described.

"Got the equipment," Steve announced. "How are you at jigsaw puzzles?"

Sharon turned to Jerry. "Why is it in so many pieces? This isn't partially functional…this is a grab bag of parts."

"Fury had it dismantled because of the guy that ran this place before me. Not as trustworthy, I guess," Jerry explained. "Most of the things kept in here were in pieces so if something like what happened in DC and some of the other bases, at least Hydra would have to waste time rebuilding the pieces."

"Yeah…this stuff was in use by the US Pararescuers in the Army," Sharon said. "Hydra could have used one of those just as easily.

"Hey, I just run the joint," Jerry said. "How's your aunt?"

"She's okay. She has her good days and some bad ones," Sharon replied. "We should get going, right Steve?"

He'd turned and was focused on the weather alert that was showing another enormous storm cell following hot on the heels of the one they'd just experienced.

"Sharon, I don't think we can go until the storm breaks. Is it okay to bunk here tonight?" he asked Jerry.

The cherubic face lit up and he nodded emphatically. "Of course! There are plenty of sleeping quarters that just go wasted! I've been dying to make my eggs benedict for someone! You two relax here, I'll go prepare rooms!"

He smiled at the both of them before he wandered off to parts unknown.

Sharon turned to Steve who looked at her with a serious face.

"I think we should stay in one room."

"One room?"

"So we can look out for one another. I'm not sure I trust this guy. And what if there are others in the base that we haven't seen? We'd be sitting ducks if we were asleep and separated."

Sharon hadn't considered that. But it was because she had personally worked with Jerry. And Fury trusted him. However, when she focused on the serious look on Steve's face, well, her resolve to keep a safe distance from Captain Steve Rogers for all reasons crumbled.

"All right, one room," Sharon said.

…

Author's note: Okay, there was the latest update…what did you think?

Also, thank you all for reading this story. It makes me so happy!


	8. Chapter 8

Hide & Seek – Eight

Bright and early the following morning, Sharon and Steve were awake and alert and getting ready for the day. The weather report said it had done a total one-eighty and they were going to take advantage of it and get a move on.

Sharon found Jerry in the kitchen, an apron over his suit while he mixed something in a bright yellow bowl.

"Well, Jer, we're going to get out of your hair," Sharon said.

"Already? It's only six-thirty!" Jerry almost-whined.

It was bordering on temper-tantrum status and Sharon was waiting for him to stamp his foot in anger.

"Yeah, we have to get going. Long trip still ahead of us," she replied. "Thank you for the hospitality, though," she finished. "It was good to see you again."

She was just about out the door when he called out to her.

"So you and Captain Rogers shared a room last night," he said.

Sharon stopped and backed a step into the kitchen again.

"What?" she asked, despite knowing full well what she'd heard come out of his mouth.

"Nothing. Just making an observation," Jerry smirked.

"Does he know that you're his ex-gal's niece?"

"Do you think I could keep that kind of thing from him?"

"Once a SHIELD agent, always a…"

"I'm not so sure that's true anymore, Jer," Sharon replied. "And yes, he knows. And I know what you're insinuating…nothing is going on between Steve and I," Sharon told him.

"Well, if you ever want it to be something, I would skip telling him that you had Captain America pajamas as a little girl," he teased.

"Remind me to not go drinking with you anymore. What other secrets did I spill to you?" she laughed.

"You confessed your undying love for me that one time."

"Lies. All lies," Sharon said. "I really ought to go find Steve so we can go. Thank you, again."

"No worries. Is there anything you need to take with you? You're welcome to whatever supplies are here. I hope you're able to find Rogers' friend. The Winter Soldier went from being an urban legend to a legitimate menace to the world."

Steve told me that he thought Barnes recognized him. And that's why he saved him out of the Potomac," Sharon said. "Some of James Barnes has to be in there still. We need to find him. For his sake and Steve's."

Steve came running into the room. "We have to go now."

Sharon wore a concerned expression. "What? Did something happen?"

"I was watching the local news and they're looking for someone who, based on the sketch, could be Bucky. And it was just a couple counties west from here. A town called Cooper. We should check it out."

Sharon nodded. "Of course. Let's go," she said. "Thanks again, Jerry."

"Yes, thank you," Steve extended his hand.

"It's been a pleasure to assist you, Captain Rogers," he smiled and shook Steve's hand.

…

The sun was shining brightly in a blue sky when they finally emerged from the barn.

"What is this base called?" Steve asked as they began to walk back to the car.

Sharon smiled as she put her sunglasses on her face. "The Farm."

Steve nodded. "How appropriate."

"Sometimes SHIELD does things so blatantly that it's gross…"

A very short while later, Steve was unlocking the car and Sharon was running a test to find out if the vehicle had been tampered with.

"I feel like this was a lot longer of a walk yesterday," Sharon said without looking up.

"I think it's because we weren't being pelted with sideways rain this time," Steve said. "And there was the unknown."

Sharon nodded. "This thing could still blow up if you're concerned about the unknown."

"I see you didn't waste too much time on being optimistic," Steve replied.

"Sometimes a girl just needs to be the voice of doom and gloom," Sharon replied. "But," she disconnected the tool from the car. "No one's tried to screw with the car so far today."

Steve moved around the car and opened the passenger door for Sharon.

"Why thank you," Sharon said as she climbed in.

They hadn't discussed the night before. Of course, _nothing_ happened the night before. Steve took up residence on the room's tiny sofa – which Sharon didn't understand why it was in there in the first place – and he gave Sharon the bed. She hadn't slept much, however. She must have dozed off at some point because Steve woke her up the next morning.

"So, we head to Lincoln, check things out then we start to follow what?" Sharon asked. "I mean, do you have any idea where he might go?"

"If he was beginning to remember things, he would go somewhere that he recognized. He would want to go somewhere that he could get answers. With the Red Skull and Alexander Pierce gone, he'd go to the next source. There's a place in Seattle that he'd been held for a while according to the file on him."

Steve started the car and thankfully it sprung to life without blowing up. Sharon let out a breath that she didn't realize she'd been holding.

"Seattle, huh?"

He nodded.

"I think I know a guy who can build our bag of parts into the wings for Wilson," Sharon said.

"Will he be discrete? I don't really want to advertise this whole thing. Technically we just stole these from SHIELD."

"An organization that no longer exists," Sharon told him. "And he's my godfather. He's kind of a loudmouth, but he _can_ be trusted, I promise."

"And where can we find your godfather?"

"He's in California," Sharon said. "He'll let us stay with him. Sam can join us when he can."

"That sounds great," Steve said. "So", he said as he steered them onto the road. "Which way to Cooper?"

…

The trip to Cooper, Nebraska wasn't as long as they'd thought it would be, but as they pulled into town, they found exactly why the man was wanted. Steve and Sharon grew impatient to find a parking spot and see the destruction in person.

The town itself was incredibly small and was basically the one road surrounded by farmland. In fact, they'd almost passed right through without noticing.

Steve pulled his ball cap down to cover his eyes and climbed out of the car upon finally parking it about six blocks from the site of the burned out buildings.

They walked the distance, keeping their heads down for time, and inspected the burned out buildings from the perimeter formed by police caution tape.

"All this happened yesterday?" Sharon asked.

Steve nodded. "According to the news."

Three buildings where they stood had been demolished. It seemed like a bomb had gone off and fried them all.

A young man on a skateboard came flying towards them and was stopped suddenly when he made eye contact with Steve.

"You're…" the kid started.

"Shhh," Steve said. "Do you know what happened here?" he pointed with his shoulder.

"Some crazy guy came through town the last few days. Total nut job. Last night I heard he got drunk at the bar and then started throwing grenades."

"Grenades?" Sharon walked over. "What were these buildings?"

"Doctor's offices, mostly, I think. At least that one was," he said. He pointed to the most damaged of the three. "He was definitely aiming for that one. The cops think when he was wasted he missed and hit the other two buildings first."

"Jeremy!" a woman's shrill voice called.

"Coming, mom!" he shouted back. He half-heartedly saluted at Steve and then continued on his skateboard down the street.

"Maybe he'd made a pit stop here once in his travels. He's been in and out of ice a lot over the last 70 years," Sharon told Steve.

"I know how I reacted after one time. I can't imagine what it's like to be put away and hauled out again later when they decided they needed me again."

"We should got talk to some more locals and see if anyone knew him. The kid said he'd been here a few days. It could be Bucky," Sharon said. "The timeline is right."

"Start at the bar?" Steve said. From anyone else, she would have taken it the wrong way. In this case, she knew Steve simply meant to start their line of questioning there.

Sharon nodded and the two of them walked down the road.

Steve was pleased he had someone to go with him on this hunt. Sam would have been called away and he would have been left alone to look for Buck; which he was prepared to do. However, it didn't mean he wasn't enjoying Sharon's company.

He hoped that Sharon hadn't gotten the wrong idea of why he suggested one room the night before. Not that anything physical had happened anyway, but she had looked at him like he was crazy to suggest it. Maybe she wasn't attracted to him. He'd always confused signals from women.

There was just no way he could let her alone last night. Something was off about Jerry Johns, he just didn't know what it was. And he didn't know how right he was.

…

Back in the SHIELD facility, deep underground Jerry Johns was actually bound and gagged. The life model decoy that had been built in his place was reporting to his superior.

"They're on their way to Cooper, Nebraska. They think they've found the Winter Soldier. They also have the wings – or the pieces of the wings. None of those things would even be put to use in a garbage disposal much less the pararescue Project: Falcon wings. Our set is still here, safe and sound, Herr Schmidt."

"I am very glad to hear that. Now, where is Rumlow?" the Red Skull's voice said over the phone.

…

Author's note: thank you thank you thank you for the kind words for my last chapter. Hopefully you like this one just as much…

Thank you!


	9. Chapter 9

Hide & Seek – Nine

Steve Rogers and Sharon Carter did a bit of walking in the little area of Cooper and found that this particular block had three bars. They started at one end of the street, the one farthest away from the damage done and closest to a tiny strip motel that reminded Sharon of the Bates' motel.

The first bartender, who actually even owned the bar, hadn't even seen the picture on the news. Steve tried not to judge people's appearances, but judging the smell and just general disheveledness, he suspected this guy hadn't even seen daylight in more than a week.

But the guy stood with squinted eyes and attempted to recognize the old black and white photo that Steve had brought with him. It was a damn old, dog-eared photo, but Steve was certain it would work just as well. Sharon pulled up the artist's rendering of the wanted man, as well. She figured it wouldn't hurt to have both images.

The man shook his head, though, after five minutes of going back and forth between the two images and it took all of the willpower that Sharon had to not deck the guy for taking so long to tell them no.

The second bar wasn't all that helpful either. The bartender shook his head, said that he'd never seen the guy in this bar and the bartender's girlfriend sidled up to Sharon and whispered something in her ear. Sharon simply politely declined the whispered offer and the woman winked and walked away. The bartender then directed them to the bar at the furthest end of the block and closest to the burned down buildings.

Outside, Steve was curious as to what the woman asked. "Are you going to tell me what she asked you?"

"Uh…it's probably best if you _don't_ know," Sharon told him.

Steve was confused. He was used to women winking at him, it was new to see one woman wink like that to another. And Sharon was turning a shade of pink. But he figured he wasn't going to get any more information, so he dropped it all together.

The bar that they walked into down the street, just around the corner from these burned out buildings was a much seedier place. It was only eleven-thirty in the morning and there were a folks in there who simultaneously groaned and gave them dirty looks as they let so much bright light into the dark place.

"There are a lot of people in the bar for it being so early in the day," Steve whispered in Sharon's ear. His warm breath sent tingles down her neck and through her whole body. Sharon let herself enjoy the sensation for a brief moment and then focused herself once more.

"It's five o'clock somewhere," Sharon replied before she realized that Steve probably had no idea what she was talking about.

Sharon moved toward the half-awake bartender who was watching some rerun of _The Price is Right_. She pulled up the artist's sketch again on her phone and Steve handed her the dog-eared photo of the real Bucky.

"Excuse me," Sharon started, but the spaced-out guy paid her no attention.

"Excuse me," Steve said in a louder voice, but still nothing. He exchanged looks with Sharon who then decided it was time to be forceful.

"Hey!" She shouted as she slammed one of the nearby beer mugs into the wooden counter where it shattered into a million pieces.

"What the hell did ya do that for?" the man shouted at her in a nasty venomous tone.

"We tried asking nicely," Sharon said as sweetly as possible.

"What do you want?"

"Have you seen this man?" Sharon slid her phone and the photo towards the stoned bartender.

"Not this again. Can't you guys get your shit together? I've already talked to cops twice about this loser," the man said.

"Twice?" Steve asked.

"Yeah. The first wore uniforms. The next was a dude, pretty beefy, though, not as beefy as you. Do you, like, take steroids?" he asked Steve.

"No," Steve replied. "Would you please go back to the story?"

The man held up his hands. "Whoa, sorry, dude. Wouldn't want you to get angry and sic your girlfriend on me."

"No, I don't think you'd fare very well," Steve said as he got angrier. "And we'll find out in about thirty seconds if you don't start talking."

"Listen, dude. I don't gotta tell you nothing," he said.

"That's a double negative."

Steve reached out and grabbed the guy by the collar and pulled him in towards the bar.

"Talk," Steve said.

"Okay, the guy in the picture had been in here every day for a few days. He asked a bunch of stupid questions about the medical building next door."

"What kind of questions?" Sharon asked.

"Can you have the Hulk put me down?" the guy asked as his feet struggled to touch floor.

Steve complied and dropped him on his feet on the bar floor.

"Geez, man. Wrong side of the bed this morning?" he asked when he adjusted his shirts.

"What was the guy asking about? Did he tell you a name?"

"Are you guys cops? Because…"

"No. Not police," Sharon replied.

"What are you then?"

"CIA," Sharon said as she pulled out a badge.

"The guy said his name was Jack Monroe, but I think that was fake. He wanted to know how long that building had been there and what kind of work they did. It was a dentist's office recently. I think it was once a free clinic back in the fifties and sixties. But I wasn't there. Anyway, dude got totally sloshed last night, like he did all the other nights, and stumbled out around midnight. He threw a couple of grenades at the medical center, missed the first couple times and ends up blowing up all three buildings. But the police, I heard them whispering…it wasn't a regular ol' grenade. They think he was a nutjob who got his hands on some super-duper experimental shit and blew everything all effing up."

Steve pointed to the photograph. "You're sure this was the guy?"

The bartender squinted and nodded. "Dude's eyes were way more sunken and he had long greasy hair, but this was definitely him."

"Does anyone know where he went?" Sharon asked. "Or where he'd been staying while he was here in town?"

"He said he was staying with friends. But I saw him come out of the Lonely Pine down the road. I think he'd been camped out there for a few days."

Steve and Sharon looked at one another. They would try there next. They might be able to get into the room and see something the police missed.

"Thank you for the information," Steve said politely. The door to the bar opened and a shaft of light fell across Steve's face.

"Hey, aren't you…?"

"No, he's not," Sharon said quickly. "Thanks again."

Sharon had Steve by the wrist and was pulling him out into the bright sunlight where they both struggled to focus for a minute.

"Motel next," Sharon said.

"Yes, ma'am," Steve replied.

An hour later, however, they had hit a brick wall. The manager of the Lonely Pine hadn't seen Bucky in person; he'd only seen the artist's rendering on the news that morning.

"Well, that sucks," Sharon pouted as she poured ketchup on her hamburger.

They had temporarily given up their search out of sheer hunger and stopped at a restaurant back down the road to eat.

"We can still go look into the bombed buildings. Bucky must have thought he found something that he remembered or…"

"Was totally wasted drunk and was carrying grenades," Sharon finished.

"Exactly."

"But the way that the FBI is tenting the area…like SHIELD did when we did when we found Thor's hammer in New Mexico…well, something is up."

During their walk, the local police and some National Guard workers were setting up a bigger perimeter and were containing the site from onlookers and intruders.

"We need to get in there and look around," he told her.

"Yes, we do," she agreed.

"I'm just not one hundred percent sure how to do that."

She nodded. "And I don't understand why none of the cops here have been running interference."

"What do you mean?"

"No one has come and asked us why we're here asking questions or who we are. No one. That's weird."

"Cooper isn't very big, but you _did_ tell that one bartender you were CIA…"

"And news of the CIA in town usually draws questions. It would spread like wildfire. CIA rarely has anything to do with stuff like this. This would have been a SHIELD situation and not because of Bucky's involvement. But because _we_ are the best at containment," Sharon explained.

Steve finished his burger and thought silently for a moment.

"They said a man, not dressed like a police officer, but IDing himself as one, came through and asked questions. Small town would know their officers. Lincoln isn't a small town, but I'll bet this area is familiar with their officers of the law."

Sharon nodded. "Probably."

"So, we need to find that guy, too," Steve said.

"We could start at the police station, but if it really is the Lincoln PD running the thing, they'll keep us from getting to the site."

"Site first, then."

Sharon smiled, then finished the last of her hamburger.

"I'm really happy that you're here with me," Steve said before he could stop himself. But instead of getting slapped like he pictured, Sharon blushed from the roots of her dark hair all the way down to where it disappeared under her collar.

"I'm glad I'm here, too," she said.

Steve's phone started to ring in his pocket and ruined the moment half a second later.

"I hate this damn thing," he said as he pulled it from his pocket.

"Why is your apartment full of bullets?" Natasha Romanoff's voice yelled into the phone. "Rogers!?"

"Ah, hello to you, too, Natasha," Steve said in a low tone into the phone. He continued to smile goofily at the pink blush that Sharon still wore.

"Bullets, Rogers!" Natasha said. "Who shot up your apartment? And where the hell are you?"

"I can't tell you that. And we aren't one hundred percent sure who did the shooting. We have a couple ideas, but nothing solid, though."

"I'm going to go into the shop over there and see if I can talk to the lady running it," Sharon whispered.

From where they'd been eating, Steve had a clear view of the store front that Sharon mentioned. He nodded and continued on his phone call with Black Widow.

"Who is we?" Natasha asked.

"I thought you were going to lie low for a while," Steve replied.

"I was going to and then I decided to lie low with you…well…at your apartment."

"Natasha?" Steve said. Something was off. "I have to go. I'll check in with you later.'

He disconnected the call and tore the damn thing into pieces. Something was up with her. She had told him that she was going to disappear for a while. There was no way she would have come back to Steve's apartment in DC. And even though it was Nat's voice and the number that showed up on the caller ID. All of those things could be faked.

Steve took a deep breath and sat back in the bench and watched Sharon walk into the little antique shop across the street. He planned to let her have a few minutes and then go after her. In the time that he turned his head to pay the waitress, he missed what caused the explosion that blew out the shop's windows and started the building on fire.

… …

Sharon hadn't wanted to listen in on Steve's conversation with Natasha Romanoff. Okay, in actuality, she did. But Sharon decided to put some money down on the table and whispered to let Steve know where shew as headed.

The little shop sat directly across from the restaurant (and was right around the block from the bombed buildings). It was a sort of antique store that reminded Sharon of the living room in the Addams' Family house. There was just a ton of kitschy nonsense from all decades and it made Sharon smile. She scanned the store for someone working and saw no one.

"Hello?" she called out.

Nothing.

A few more minutes of silence passed and she heard the deadbolt click locked behind her. Sharon turned immediately.

A man, slightly taller than her, stood there.

"Oh, you scared me," Sharon said and she wasn't lying. She had no idea where he'd come from.

"You've been around town asking a lot of questions," he said.

"Well, yes. But we're just trying to find out what's gone on here. Do you know what that big building, the one in the middle, used to be?" Sharon asked.

"Lived here my whole life," the man replied.

"Oh, okay," Sharon nodded. "So what was that building?"

"It doesn't matter now. It's destroyed," the man said with no inflection in his voice. "You shouldn't be asking questions."

"Okay…" Sharon said again, only this time she was beginning to get freaked out. He stared at her and was moving towards her.

He lunged for her and she managed to dodge his first attempt on her life.

Sharon searched for anything that she could use as a weapon.

Finding a set of golf clubs, she pulled it out and swung as hard as she could. She caught him in the teeth. He spit out a couple of teeth and blood as he struggled to recover from the hit.

"You shouldn't have done that."

He opened his jacket and revealed a partially metal torso and a ripcord on a bomb that was implanted into him. He pulled on the cord and now something was going to happen.

Sharon took her chance to dive behind the counter – the closest cover available – and found herself face to face with the dead woman who owned the shop until very recently.

Sharon didn't have time to do anything to react. The bomb went off and she fought for consciousness for a minute before passing out totally.

...

Author's Note: You guys are awesome! A big thank you to all of my readers and an even bigger thanks to the folks who took the time to message me for the nice cards.

Thank you! And I hope you liked this one!


	10. Chapter 10

Hide & Seek – Ten

Steve Rogers was up and out of the diner before anyone else could react. He had to get to Sharon – nothing else mattered.

He made his way across the road, not even breathing hard as he ran the distance. He heard the fire truck sirens in the distance but Steve knew he couldn't wait to go into the building.

Steve went into the store via the shattered windows. He kicked in a bit more space for him to fit and nicked his arm on a jagged side. But he kept going.

Everything that was flammable was almost totally incinerated by the blast and the things that were still burning made the heat incredibly intense. Bur none of that was going stop him.

It was hard to see anything with all of the flames and black smoke, but he had hope that he would locate Sharon.

Steve found the area that the bomb seemed to have been located, but all of the remains were immediately incinerated.

He coughed on the black smoke that was filling his lungs, but Steve was definitely a man on a mission.

He stumbled around as best he could, but it was almost impossible as the floor was starting to give away.

Through half-closed eyes, he spotted a boot that he thought he recognized. The floor creaked ominously as he tread as lightly as he could. The horrible thought that the boot wasn't attached to anything and he shuddered at the thought.

But when he saw that it was still on Sharon's leg and the leg was still attached to her body, be let out a shallow breath of relief.

He stopped to pick her up from the floor and then looked for an exit from this mess.

Steve was nearly to the door when the final step out the back door when the damaged floor gave out underneath him and they both collapsed through.

…

Steve heard a faint tweeting of a bird in the distance and it coaxed him from being asleep. He opened his eyes and moved to sit up from the prone position he'd been in. He was in a house and between the shock of not knowing where he was and that there was a shooting pain in his side, he let out a sharp gasp.

A man in beat up jeans and flannel came around the corner and behind him was Sharon and a woman in a house dress. Sharon was limping slightly, but smiled now that Steve was finally awake.

He looked at Sharon and the older couple with a confused expression. Sharon moved to his side immediately.

"How are you feeling?"

"Better now that I know you're all right."

"Mr. Captain America," the old man started. "My father and uncles fought with you in the war. It is so…" a tear rolled down his cheek as he spoke. "…to meet you."

Steve, despite his pain, moved from the couch he was laying on, to stand. He moved to shake the hold man's hand.

"Henry," the man's wife said quietly as she put a comforting hand on her husband's arm.

"I'm okay, May," he replied. "Now, are you okay, Cap?"

"Please, call me Steve," he told them. "Forgive me, but I have no idea how I got here," he told all three of them.

"We were coming back from shopping and saw you carry the young lady out of Leslie's store that was burning down," the man said. "You looked like you were doing okay, but you were coughing a lot. And then suddenly you collapsed. Sharon here helped us get you in the back of the pick-up truck and we brought you here. Be out cold…oh, I'm sorry!" he said and immediately got embarrassed.

Steve held up his hand and smiled. "It's okay," he said laughing. He turned to look at Sharon. "I must have dropped you."

"Better than being stuck in a burning building," Sharon told him. "Thank you. Why are you holding your side like that?" she asked him.

"It hurts, but it's probably just a broken rib when I fell through the floor."

Sharon, ignoring all personal boundaries, pulled his jacket back and revealed a bloody shirt with a huge hole in it. She pulled up the shirt and found a gash about four inches long on his side.

"You wish it was a broken rib," Sharon said. She turned to the woman. "Mrs. Crego, do you have a first aid kit I could borrow?"

"I can do you one better. My aunt used to be a nurse and I'll bet I still have her bag around here."

May disappeared for a moment and returned with a nursing bag straight out of World War II.

"Whoa…" Steve said under his breath.

"What?" Sharon asked as she directed him to sit.

"That's _actually _as old as I am," he smiled. "And I'm happy I actually recognized something."

Sharon smiled and began to pull equipment from the bag. Everything was long expired, except for a suture kit from the mid-nineties.

She inspected the container.

"It's your lucky day, Captain," she said.

"Why is that?"

"This kit is still sorta usable," she told him.

"Sorta?"

"Well, you aren't going to be able to be numbed for the actual stitches. Is that going to be okay?"

"Give me your worst."

Steve divested himself of first his jacket and then the shirt.

"We'll give you some privacy to work," Henry told the both of them. He then dragged his wife from the room.

Sharon smiled and got to work silently cleaning up the wound so she could eventually stitch it up.

"I thought you weren't a nurse?" Steve said as he watched Sharon meticulously clean the wound.

"Who told you that?"

"You're just full of surprises?"

"Why do you think I picked nurse as my cover?"

"The comfortable shoes?" he asked.

"Touchez, Captain," she smiled.

Sharon finished cleaning up the wound then moved to turn on the switch to throw more light on everything. Satisfied with the cleanup, she moved to get the stitches ready.

"Would you like a piece of leather to bite down on?" she asked.

"It's not like you're taking a bullet out," Steve said.

Sharon narrowed her eyes. "You've been warned."

Steve used all of his patience and willpower to keep silent while she stitched the gash in his side she was efficient and neat and within minutes she was finished.

"Well, Captain, you're all closed up," she said. "It might be a scar, but this kit is almost 20 years old…"

He grabbed his bloodied and ripped shirt and pulled it back over his head. Sharon looked at him in disbelief.

"No one'll notice that," she said sarcastically.

"It's just gotta last me until I get back to the car. I think we might have overstayed our welcome here in Nebraska."

"I just don't know what happened," Sharon shook her head. "I think the guy was part machine. The triggering mechanism for the bomb came out of him."

"Something is up with this town and I think we stumbled right into the middle of it.

"What were they doing in the building?"

A voice cleared its throat behind them. Steve and Sharon both turned to look. It was Mr. Crego. "It was used for experiments, Cap," He said as he quietly walked back into the room. "I didn't mean to eavesdrop, but…"

"No, no," Steve waved his hand. "What kind of experiments?"

"I think it was a rehab clinic for a while, for folks leaving the war. But soon the people using it and running…got weirder and weirder…"

"How so?" Sharon asked.

"Robots."

Sharon had to keep herself from rolling her eyes and laughing out loud. But really…robots?

"Men and women both were coming outta that place with metal parts. I'm not so old that I don't know that they've been giving people new metal parts for years, but these folks come out changed in more ways than that…" Henry said. "That fella that blew it up…he was like them."

"Did you meet him?"

"Found him asleep in my barn out back one night a few days ago," Henry told them. "Looked tired as hell. Like you both do. I let him stay. Then last night he went and blew the place up."

"Did he say anything about himself or what he was doing here?" Sharon asked.

"Well, I reckon he was here to blow the place up," Henry said. "He was really polite. Said his name was Jack. He had a metal arm, though. He helped me fix my tractor up the other day. I recognized the drawing of him on TV this morning and couldn't believe it. Went outside to the barn and sure as shit there was no Jack, but there was this note."

He pulled out the note from his overalls and smoothed it out before handing it over to Steve.

"He wrote a thank you note," Steve told Sharon once he finished reading it.

"Not like a lot of other folks his age around here. Why are you after him?" Henry asked.

"He might be a friend of mine from a long time ago and we've got to get him some help," Steve explained.

"Well, from the talk we were havin', I would say he was headed west. 'Course I never would've though he would've blown up a building. Listen, he didn't blow himself up, did he?"

Sharon shook her head and put a comforting hand on Henry's forearm. "Don't worry; he wouldn't have do that."

"Thank you so much for all of your help and the hospitality, Mr. Crego," Steve said. "But I think we had better get going. He might not be that far ahead of us."

"May! Cap and Sharon are going!" Henry shouted behind himself.

"Thank you, Mr. Crego," Sharon said. "Do us a favor, don't tell anyone what you told us about B – Jack. Here is my cell phone number in case you need us."

"I don't think anyone would ask…" Henry said as he looked down at the card. "No one knew he'd stayed here."

"You be surprised," Sharon muttered under her breath.

"Might I be able to keep this note?" Steve asked.

"Would ya sign something for me?" Henry replied.

"Of course."

May wandered out with her husband's father's World War II helmet and Steve took the extended marker to put down his autograph.

After a brief good-bye and some directions, Sharon and Steve were headed toward town.

"I can't believe our rescuers had that information," Sharon said.

"This town is … odd," Steve said as he searched for the best description.

"It's only fifteen miles from one of the biggest cities in Nebraska."

"Doesn't make it any less weird, Sharon," Steve pointed out.

"The people who found us were first found by Bucky. It's almost too convenient."

"Look who's being the optimist now," Sharon said sarcastically.

He stopped walking and Sharon did the same.

"I'm not trying to rain on our little parade, but we do need to be logical about this. Why did Bucky choose the Cregos?"

"Who knows how long he'd been bumming around until Henry found him in the barn? We know the time line and it fits. And that would mean that we're a day, maybe mere hours behind him," Sharon said as they began walking again. "What do you want to do, Cap?" 

"I think we should be ready for when Sam joins us. Getting Bucky help isn't going to be an easy task and we'll need all the help we can get. I think we should take the wing parts to your godfather in California. Did you tell me his name, I apologize because I don't remember it…"

"Um, it's Tony Stark."

…

Author's note: thank you for the awesome response to chapter 9. I wanted to get 10 up as soon as possible. Hopefully you enjoyed this one as much.

I had a review point out that Lincoln was not right in my story. Absolutely. I have gone back and made the necessary changes, so hopefully it all makes a bit more sense now.

Thank you again!


	11. Chapter 11

Hide & Seek – Eleven

There had been at least a solid minute of silent disbelief before Steve spoke again.

"…Tony Stark is your godfather?"

"Believe me, if I could have chosen, I would have gone a different route. Probably someone a hell of a lot more responsible. I'm not sure what my parents were thinking…"

"Does he know you worked for SHIELD?" Steve asked. "I gathered that he didn't care much for Fury or SHIELD all that much."

"Well, he knows now," Sharon replied. "Tony also thought I was a nurse."

"He has the resources to find out the truth."

"Tony chose not to. He's been dealing with his own shit since New York," Sharon said.

Still trying to internalize all the information, Steve started walking again. Sharon paused for a minute and then jogged to catch up with him.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you before, Steve. I…"

Steve shook his head. "It's really not a big deal, Sharon. He and I just don't see eye to eye. And I don't want this to turn into the Tony Stark Show once we tell him what we're doing. He doesn't exactly like to blend in."

Sharon tried to stifle a laugh and failed.

He cast her a sideways look of confusion. "What?"

"It's funny that you think _you_ blend in," she said. "I didn't tell Henry Crego who you were; he just _knew_. And every teenage girl in America has a Captain America pillow in their bedrooms now. You aren't exactly good at blending either, sir."

A blush crept across Steve's face and he pulled down the bill of his baseball cap.

"Pillows?"

"All kinds of Avengers stuff is available for purchase."

"Don't I have to sign off on my likeness?"

"_Your likeness?_" Sharon echoed. "Spend time reading up on copyright law?" Sharon asked.

"I've been reading up on _everything_. I think I've finally mastered the difference between Star Wars and Star Trek, too."

Sharon held up her hand in a Vulcan salute. "Live long and prosper," she smiled.

"Spock, right?" he said, unsure of himself.

"You got it," Sharon smiled again.

…

The Crego's farm was about two miles outside of the little town of Cooper. They had made it maybe a half mile as the darkness between to fall.

"Are there bears in Nebraska?" Sharon asked.

"Um…"

"I'll admit my knowledge of the animals of the central Midwest is lacking."

"I would have to say mine isn't all that great either," Steve laughed. "I was always more into art in school."

"Aunt Peggy told me she'd seen you sketch before…said you were very good. Do you still draw?"

Steve shook his head. "Not much lately. And I was always just goofing around…"

"I doubt that very much. Aunt Peggy said you always had an intense look on your face when you were drawing."

"Did she talk of the war often?"

"The war – no. You – often. But only to me. Even in the last few years as her memory started to fade, she spoke of you clearly and often. She loved my uncle very much, but she loved you, too."

Steve grew silent as they continued down the dark road towards Cooper. He already knew the things that Sharon was telling him, but hearing them out loud was totally different. And it was confusing the feelings he was having for Sharon that seemed to grow with each minute they spent together.

Steve wasn't upset by what she'd said, though, and he certainly didn't want her to think that he was. So, in an act of boldness, he reached down and took Sharon's hand in his own. Steve waited for her to pull it away or react somehow similar, but instead she simply left her hand there. And it stayed there for the entire duration of the trek back to Cooper.

…

Sharon and Steve made the rest of the trip in comfortable silence. But Steve could tell that Sharon was tensing as they drew nearer to the location of their car.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"Something about this town…it makes me uncomfortable…I just wish we could have taken a look around the medical buildings. Who was doing the experimenting? Was Bucky actually treated there at one point?"

"I think we can safely say that Bucky was here at least at one point in the past as well as within the last twenty four hours. I don't think is a coincidence that the Farm SHIELD facility and this building were so near each other. Pierce or someone planned that."

"I think you're right."

They finished the rest of their walk to the car and Sharon pulled her phone from her pocket. She was lucky that the thing still worked after being through the explosion and the falling. Sharon pulled up an app and began running a version of the device that she could check for tampering. The actual device was still locked in the trunk…hopefully.

Something beeped and Steve looked up at her for an explanation. "I think it's a good thing that we have this…" Sharon told him.

"Why is that? Did you find something?" Steve asked.

"Let's just get our things from the trunk and get out of here," Sharon said hurriedly.

Steve used the remote to pop the trunk and they each grabbed their bags quickly.

"Aren't you…"

"We need to get back," Sharon said.

She grabbed Steve by the wrist and dragged him away as the car burst into flames starting somewhere in the front dashboard area.

"I'm probably not going to get the rental deposit back," Steve said.

…

They stood the short distance away, staring at the flames that were now engulfing the car. Sharon nodded, as if she'd seen this whole things coming. Then she sighed loudly.

"So, we'll need some other way to get out of this town. I could call Tony, but he'll…"

"Don't call Stark yet," Steve said adamantly as the car continued to burn brightly against the darkness that surrounded them.

"So what would you suggest, Captain?"

"We could borrow something."

Sharon turned to stare down the Captain. "_You're_ suggesting we _steal _someone's car? I can't believe it."

"Borrow," Steve said again. Although he didn't quite believe that this one would make it back to its owner any better than the truck before had. "There is a small used car lot down the other end of town. They'll probably have something that would do."

Sharon smiled. It seemed like that was their only hope of getting out of Cooper that night.

They began to walk and truthfully, Sharon was going to be happy to be in a car again. She was tired.

"May I borrow your phone? I would like to see if I can get a hold of Sam to update him."

"Sure," Sharon said as she pulled it from her back pocket. "Yours dead?"

"In pieces, actually. That call I got from Natasha? I'm pretty sure that wasn't her. I didn't want someone to be able to track me, so, I, um, destroyed it," Steve told her.

"Anger, huh?"

"More like stupidity."

He dialed the number from memory a second later. It rang several times before a sleepy-sounding Sam answered.

"Hello?" he yawned.

"Sam? It's Steve," he said back to his friend.

"Oh, hey. Hold on."

There was a rustling sound and a door closing before Sam came back on the line.

"I'm so sorry to wake you…"

"No, no, man. What's going on? Found anything?"

"We picked up a lead in Nebraska and it looks like we missed Bucky by a day or so. And someone else is not happy that we're both on his trail."

"Whoa…what happened?"

"I don't want to talk too much on the phone, but we're getting a car and heading for California. We'll send you the address when we get there. How are things with you?" Steve asked, switching gears effortlessly.

"It's a good thing I came out here. People are being idiots. And by people, I mean my family. The funeral service is tomorrow; I can probably leave here Saturday."

"Take your time, Sam. Your family needs you."

"Thanks, Cap," Sam said. "Keep me posted. Oh hey – how are things with Sharon?"

Steve and Sharon were almost to the used car dealership and Steve turned to look at Sharon who was pulling her hair up onto the top of her head and not paying any attention to him. "Good. Very good," he smiled.

Steve finished talking to Sam as they approached the dealership. Sharon was already ahead of him looking at the makes and models available to her.

"Do you think it would too cliché to take this one?" Sharon pointed to a bright red vehicle next to her.

Steve read the model in the darkness. "Avenger? Probably."

Sharon laughed. "This dude's got a little bit of everything," she said as she continued her stroll.

"We need something sturdy and not too flashy," Steve said.

"Are you going to kick the tires?"

"Only if you want them to go flat," Steve replied.

They both looked around the lot and finally in the back they both spotted it. A generic gold sedan that would be perfect for a road trip.

Sharon reached under the car and slid her hand around and came back with the key.

Steve stared. "Why would they do that?"

"So he wouldn't have to walk all the way back to the building for the keys. I'm guessing that this guy wasn't all that concerned with theft. Or exercise."

The both of them put their things in the easily-unlocked car and Steve turned over the engine. It didn't explode. The both of them took a deep breath of relief in unison.

Steve flashed the headlights on and pulled out of the lot. No alarms. No guards. No dogs chasing them.

"California, here we come," Sharon said.

… … …

"How could that _not_ have killed the woman?!" the Red Skull shouted. He'd seen the surveillance footage at least a half a dozen times and still couldn't believe that the explosion hadn't killed her. "Where are they going?" he shouted into a second monitor.

"They're still on the Winter Soldier's trail, but they ned the wings fixed up," Rumlow told him. "I think she'll take 'em to Stark."

"Good, we'll kill three birds with one stone."

…

Author's note: thanks to everyone who's been reading! A big thanks to the folks that review and let me know what they like and don't like. I try to fix mistakes as best I can.

Anyway, hope this chapter was to everyone's liking! Not sure when I'll be able to post again in the next week or so due to limited internet availability, but I will be able to get some major writing done!

Thanks again!


	12. Chapter 12

Hide & Seek – Twelve

They'd been driving for hours. Hours and hours. A few hours in, Sharon had taken over the driving so Steve could close his eyes for a bit, despite the fact that he'd insisted that he was fine. And now the man was out cold. Sharon couldn't help but smile at him.

They were probably still six or so hours away from California and Sharon was trying to decide if she was going to warn her godfather or simply show up on his doorstep.

She was leaning towards the surprise, but definitely didn't want a Captain America vs. Iron Man thing starting because of her.

After debating back and forth for an hour, she came up with a compromise. She would call from down the road. There would still be enough time to put pants on this way, but not quite enough time to pack up and pretend he was elsewhere. Not that she expected that response anyway. Tony had always been fond of Sharon.

Sharon laughed quietly to herself and rolled her shoulders and neck. She'd been the one driving for a couple hours and despite being exhausted, she didn't want to stop the car and wake up Steve.

She should have slept when Steve was driving, but she was wired. The last few days had been intense. SHIELD was gone and she was out of a job. She'd run away from DC with Captain America and since has spent the night with him twice. To top it all off, the ambush at the rest stop and almost getting blown up had made for a rough go to say the least. None of it compared to what Steve had dealt with in his life, but it was a lot for a now out-of-work spy.

Sharon really needed to sleep. Like a full eight hours of sleep would be great, but it was too much to ask for. The GPS on the dash read that they still had another fifteen hours to Tony's place in Malibu so it was debatable if Steve would be okay with stopping to rest with so much to travel still.

She shook herself and tried to wake herself up. Steve was still sleeping peacefully, so she decided to keep driving. After all, this trip wasn't about her.

Steve had actually woken up with Sharon had giggled to herself. He hadn't been sleeping hard and the sound was a pleasant way to wake up. But he stayed still and quiet, pretending to sleep for a few more minutes because it was peaceful. For that time, things seemed normal. For those few minutes he could pretend that everything was going to be okay.

But he heard Sharon yawn and he knew it was time to come back to the real world. It was time to go back to his duties.

He opened his eyes and stretched.

"Hey," Sharon said when she noticed him.

"Hi," Steve smiled back.

He then focused in on the clock on the dash. He hadn't realized he'd been asleep that long.

"I was sleeping for almost _three_ hours?"

"Yeah, you were out cold," Sharon laughed then yawned again.

"Ha-ha," Steve smiled back. It was nice to be able to joke with someone. "Why don't you let me drive? Looks like we'll need some gas again soon, too."

Sharon was about to argue, but she yawned a third time. She didn't need to be told twice. She needed sleep.

Once they switched in the car, Sharon's eyes fell closed. Her head fell to Steve's left shoulder and she was now out like Steve had been.

However, her power nap did not last long. Sharon's phone began to ring on top volume. She groaned and reached for the device out of the cup holder.

"Hello?" she mumbled.

"Where are you? Why are there armed guards at your aunt's house? Why is your apartment open and full of bullets?"

Sharon sighed. "Hi, mom. Which one of the questions would you like me to answer first?" she asked back sarcastically.

"Sharon Elizabeth…"

"I'm headed out west to see Tony. I think I'm in Colorado right now."

"Why are you going to see Tony? And…"

"Mom, the guards are because of what happened in DC with SHIELD. People are after Captain America and if they discover Aunt Peggy's connection to him…well…we're trying to be safe rather than sorry."

"How did you get armed guards for your aunt?"

"Mom, I can't explain that right now. Just know that Tony and I put them there and they will watch the house. My apartment is full of bullets because someone shot them into it…"

"Young lady…"

"Mom…" Sharon said tiredly. She didn't mean to sound like an annoying teenager, but it was happening anyway. And she didn't mean to share all of her little secrets, but her mom wasn't letting her off of the hook. "Mom, up until three days ago, I worked for SHIELD. You cannot tell anyone. I'm okay. I'm with Captain Rogers and we are heading to California."

"Captain _Steve_ Rogers? You mean Captain America?"

Sharon had the beginnings of a pounding migraine and she held her temples between her thumb and pinky.

"Yes. But I have to go. Keep your eyes open and call me if you need anything. Love you, mom."

Sharon disconnected the call and dropped the phone back into the cup holder.

"You didn't call me Captain America. I like that."

"Well, you have a name. I'd prefer to use it. Besides, I feel like people should only refer to you as Captain America when you're in the stars and stripes," Sharon said tiredly. Her head started to droop again and she made herself comfortable on Steve's shoulder once more.

Steve hated to wake her as they pulled into the gas station. But the gas gauge was angrily yelling for him to put gas in the car and he figured he'd better do it.

"Are we there?" she asked sleepily as the car came to a stop.

"I want to tell you that we are, but I believe we're still in Colorado," Steve told her.

Sharon stretched and looked around. It was a fairly busy gas station on a main road that had a bunch of businesses including fast food places and some stores. Sharon saw the sign for a hotel chain and tried to figure out how she could convince Steve that they should crash for a while.

However, it was going to have to wait as nature was calling.

"I'm going to use the restroom," Sharon said as she unbuckled her seatbelt.

"I'll gas 'er up," Steve said.

Steve climbed out of the car and Sharon handed him a credit card.

"Use this for gas."

He looked down at the card in his hand and read the name: Michelle. He then turned to look at her.

"In case of emergencies," she replied.

Sharon headed for the building and Steve began the fueling process. He watched a couple of cars pull in behind them, but nothing seemed suspicious as she saw woman cross the parking lot behind Sharon. He went back to watching the gas total climb higher and higher.

Sharon found her way to the bathroom at the back of the store and while she was in the one stall another woman went into the other. When she was finished, she stood in front of the sink and washed her hands. Inspecting herself in the mirror, she realized she was a disaster.

Sharon began attempting to tame her wild hair when the other woman came out of the other stall. She washed her hands while Sharon moved to her make up.

"It's nice to get out and stretch, right?" the blonde woman asked with a smile on her face.

Sharon nodded and smiled. "Oh man, yes. Have you been driving long?"

"Just a couple hours, but it feels like forever."

"I hear ya," Sharon smiled back.

"Did you see that guy out front? He's so cute!" the blond woman said.

Sharon nodded.

"Wait! Are you with him?" the woman asked.

"Um, yeah. He's a friend of mine," Sharon replied.

"So, I was right. You're Sharon Carter," the woman said. "Perfect."

The blond woman whipped out a pair of handcuffs and reached for Sharon's wrist.

Sharon yanked her arm away. "What the hell?"

"They want you back at HQ, Agent Carter. I've been tracking you since you came into Colorado. Thanks for stopping, by the way. Made it easier to catch up with your cell phone signal. It's cute how your mom worries, though."

Sharon sneered, but ignored the comment about her mother. "Who wants me back at HQ?"

"They don't really tell the level two's that kind of intel," she told Sharon.

The woman swung at Sharon, but clearly she had no formal fight training. They ddn't seem to be training people like they used to. Sharon dodged and got in a good hit that stunned the woman for a split second. But she recovered and swung her massive purse at Sharon and caught her in the gut.

She let out a _whoosh_ of air as it connected with her and Sharon staggered back. She only let herself be surprised for a minute. Sharon came back with so much force that the woman was backed up against the wall. And for a split second, Sharon wondered why no one was hearing what was going on.

"Listen here," Sharon said as she pulled on the woman's hair to focus her attention. "I don't know who you're working for – SHIELD or Hydra – but there is _zero_ chance that I'll be going with you. And you can report that back to whoever."

Sharon grabbed the woman's shoulder and forced her against the paper towel dispenser where Sharon knocked her out cold. The woman slumped to the floor.

Sharon was a mess all over again. She ignored that, though, and grabbed the woman's handcuffs. She put one around the woman's wrist and another around the trashcan's handle. She wouldn't be going anywhere for a while.

Sharon also removed the woman's gun, SHIELD badge and cell phone from her purse. She suspected that she was a sleeper agent for Hydra rather than actually SHIELD and whatever vehicle she was using probably had more equipment, so Sharon didn't feel like she was stranding this woman.

Her last move was to get her own things from the counter. She slid them all into her bag and quickly dashed out to the car where Steve was waiting.

"Time to go," Sharon said fast. "Get in, get in!" she told him as she scanned the other cars.

"What's wrong?"

"Hydra is sending people after me. And it's only a matter of time before this one gets out of the bathroom."

… … …

Author's note: okay, I'm back! There was the latest update! What did you think?


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